MEDICAL AND SURGICAL ANTIQUES ARCHIVE, P. 30

MEDICAL AND SURGICAL ANTIQUES ARCHIVES

PAGE 30

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A Civil War CDV of Confederate surgeon Robert Herbert Worthington (1835-1886) dressed in a regulation CSA medical staff uniform. The backmark is that of Charles Rees, Richmond, Virginia. Dr. Worthington graduated from the School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, in 1861, and he joined the 31st North Carolina Infantry later in the same year. He was captured at the fall of Roanoke in August of 1862 and was exchanged. Subsequently, he was assigned to the 7th Virginia Infantry, Pickett's Division, Army of Northern Virginia. Surgeon Worthington was severely wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, and he was with General Lee's army at Appomattox. He practiced in Kempsville, Virginia, after the War.

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A fine Civil War date U.S.A. Medical Staff sword Model 1840 made by Henry Folsom, St. Louis, Missouri, and so marked at the ricasso. Folsom was in business under this name from only 1859 to 1864.

The brass hilt and scabbard retain 90% of their original gilt finish. The blade is in superb bright condition, and the etching is sharp and frosty. Besides the legend Medical Staff, the blade is marked with Masonic emblems and other decorative flourishes.

By documented family history, the sword belonged Dr. John Cockayne Copesake (1837-1917), of West Jersey, Illinois, who entered service in October of 1864 with the 114th Illinois Infantry and served until August of 1865, seeing action at the Battle of Nashville and on into Mississippi.

A Civil War tinplate image of Assistant Surgeon Copesake accompanies the medical sword.

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A rare c. 1900 antique anatomical model of the pair of human inner ears (cochlea and semicircular canals). The model was made by H. Reiner, Vienna, Austria.

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A superb c. 1830 antique trephine set by Wiegand & Snowden, Philadelphia. Note the fully-blued blade to the Hay's saw and the brass lift handle recessed into the top of the mahogany case. The underside of the case is marked in period ink $20., the original price for the set.

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An antique obstetrical hook and crotchet marked by S. Maw, a London surgical instrument maker. The center handgrips are wood.

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A rare bloodletting antique business card for Mr. and Mrs. Bese / CUPPERS & LEECHERS in Pittsburgh. Note the graphics of five leeches.

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A c. 1850 antique tonsillotome by Rees, Cincinnati.

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A turned-wood mallet with attached brass plaque engraved: Glasgow Royal Infirmary / Wood from the Lister Ward / Built, 1859. Demolished, 1924. 6.5" tall. This a fine relic of Joseph Lister's (1827-1912) Ward 24, Glasgow Royal Infirmary, the locus primus of aseptic surgery. It was Lister who first recognized that bacteria entering wounds were causing putrefaction, and he employed carbolic acid as a preventative during and after surgery. For a biography of Lord Lister (1827-1912), please see this link.

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A c. 1850 antique bloodletting spring lancet with original case.

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A c. 1840 metacarpal amputation saw with ebony handle and well-formed frame. 25.5cm long.

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Stephen Smith, Hand-Book of Surgical Operations. 279 pp. 2nd ed. New York: Bailliere Brothers, 1862. This book went through five editions within two years and was the most popular surgical manual of the Civil War. There are over 250 illustrations of various surgical instruments and operations. The original stiff paper covers are present and in very good condition. Rutkow, GS53.

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The only known surviving example of a Civil War U.S. Army officer's wall tent. It is 9 feet high, 9 feet long, and 15 feet wide. The poles are original. The tent belonged to Surgeon John Wiley of the 6th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. The 6th took part in many of the major battles of the East, including the Peninsula Campaign, Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg, to mention a few. For a history of the 6th New Jersey, please click here. The tent has been in the collection of the noted Civil War medical historian Dr. Gordon Dammann, and it is featured in two of his books on Civil War medical antiques. It remained in the estate of Dr. Wiley, of Cape May , New Jersey, until 1988, when I originally sold it to Dr. Dammann. The tent is presently on display at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, Frederick, Maryland.

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A fine example of a Struthers Anatomy Prize medal, Aberdeen University, in its original fitted-case. Sir John Struthers, MD, LLD, FRCSE (1823-1899), who held the chair of anatomy at Aberdeen from 1863 to 1889, proposed, in 1889, an annual honor for best dissection by an undergraduate. The first winner was announced in 1893. Dr. Robert W. Reid (1851-1939) succeeded Struthers to the anatomy chair, and he awarded this particular prize medal to W. Marshall Phillip, M.C.B.M., in 1896. Dr. William Marshall Phillip (1872-1932) earned distinction as an efficient Medical Officer of Health of Colombo, Ceylon, for which he received the C.B.E. from King George V. The Struthers medal was made to a high standard by the jeweler Millar of Union Street, Aberdeen, and it measures 6cm by 5.3cm. For more information about and the Struthers Anatomy Prize and the remarkable career of Dr. Struthers, please see this link. Some biographical comments on Dr. Reid, who had a special interest in anthropology, are found at this link. Dr. Phillip's obituary is at this link.

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A fine c. 1880 antique Cammann binaural stethoscope with tension spring for the ear tubes. The bell is turned from ebony.

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A c. 1900 antique circumcision shield by Frederick Haslam, Brooklyn, New York.

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Handbook of Surgical Operations, Stephen Smith, M.D. New York: Baillière Brothers, 1862. 274 pages. 257 illustrations. 3rd edition. Original covers. This surgical manual is one of Civil War's standard surgical guides.

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A scarce c. 1780s Revolutionary War era antique amputation set by Laundy, London. The antique surgical set is quite fine and has a large circular amputation knife with a strong curve to the blade. The spine of the capital amputation saw is handsomely engraved with the maker's name and a detailed view of the crown of the English monarchy. The thick veneer Santo Domingo mahogany case has its original brass fixtures, including a fancy Chippendale escutcheon to the keyhole and a bale handle on the lid. This is a representative example of a Revolutionary War surgical set as used by the Colonials and the British armies. Complete and superb.

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An autographed photograph of Christian Barnard, M.D. (1922-2001). Dr. Barnard was a noted heart surgeon from South Africa. He performed the first human heart transplant, in 1967, and made medical history. The signature is quite clear and the black-and-white photo measures 5" x 7".

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A fine silver plate c. 1860 antique ear trumpet by F.C. Rein & Son Patentees, sole inventor & only makers, No. 108 Strand, London. The bell and tube of the antique Rein London dome ear trumpet are expertly and fully hand-engraved in an elaborate foliage pattern. The pierced grill of this antique Rein ear trumpet is particularly attractive and refined.

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A c. 1890 antique suture needle holder by Codman and Shurtleff, Boston. The handles are hard rubber.

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A c. 1850 porcelain phrenology wax seal with brass base. The antique phrenology seal has not been engraved. Letter wax seals were a popular means of insuring privacy of correspondence during the Victorian (and earlier) period. 3.25" tall.

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A medal of the Société de Médecine de Bordeaux. The obverse has a profile bust of Hippokrates, the Greek physician and father of medicine. The medal was struck in 1853, and it measures 33 mm across.

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